Dennis Hopper, un Angeleno en France
It's safe to say that Dennis Hopper's counterculture credentials have long since passed their sell-by date -- consider his appearances in retirement commercials for Ameriprise Financial and his upcoming role in a cable TV spinoff of "Crash." The "Easy Rider" star has even said he voted for George W. Bush. Twice.
In France, however, he is still regarded as a rebel and an artiste -- this week he received the title of Commandeur des arts et des lettres from the French government. And the Cinémathèque Française is holding an exhibition of his L.A. photography and artwork.
You can check out some of those photographs on the Cinémathèque's website, where curators have created an interactive essay featuring Hopper in such exotic locales as Venice Beach, Beverly Hills and Miracle Mile. There's also an interactive version of the exhibition catalog. (These sites are in French, but there are a number of images to click through.)
Even if you think he's a sellout and a hack, Hopper remains an icon of an era. His artwork -- good, bad or mediocre -- are time-capsule documents of a vanished zeitgeist.
— David Ng
Photo: Dennis Hopper poses at Paris' Cinémathèque ahead of the exhibition "Dennis Hopper et le nouvel Hollywood."
Credit: Bertrand Guay /AFP / Getty Images
Au contraire! Dennis Hooper is just as much the rebel against the prevailing art world culture now as he was in the 1950's and 1960's. You can't be considered counter-culture if you are agreeing with everyone else in the cultural world.
Posted by: Brady Westwater | October 15, 2008 at 02:24 PM
Dennis Hopper is still outrageous in his starring role in tv series, Crash. Drawing from the racially-charged Oscar award-winning story line of the movie, the show is definitely worth checking out.
Crash: TV series is set to air in Canada on national Pay-TV station Super Channel starting October 20.
Now catch an exclusive first look at Episode 1 online in Canada at Super U (www.superu.ca).
Posted by: SuperU | October 21, 2008 at 10:02 AM